Residents report check scam to NPD

Wednesday

Nov 6, 2013 at 12:11 AM

John Ford

A variation of the old "work at home" scheme has been reported in Neosho.

According to Neosho Police Chief Dave McCracken, instead of stuffing envelopes or doing other menial tasks, this scheme has people place decals or advertisements on their cars. Those doing so are then paid with a cashier's check, with an accompanying letter to cash and deposit the check, wire a certain amount to the sender and then to keep the difference as their pay.

"The check is no good," McCracken said. "It appears to be good pay for what they have to do. It just goes back to the old saying: if it looks too good to be true, it's probably not. If you're dealing with anything other than a straight paycheck, verify the financial document."

The check may look real, and have the name of a real financial institution on them, but it will bounce. When that happens, the recipient's bank will deduct the amount originally credited to the recipient's account. If there isn't enough funds to cover the check, the recipient will be sued for the difference.

"The person that reported this was, fortunately, quick enough to verify the check, and they didn't lose any money," McCracken said.

The police chief said the department had one instance reported Tuesday morning, and other cases are pending. However, none of the scams have been successful, he said.

"We just want to get the word out," he said.

While many scams target senior citizens, this one targets nearly anyone hoping to make extra money.

"This is something that someone is using to take advantage of people who are out of work, or those who need extra funds for the holidays," McCracken said. "People who can least afford it."

For more information, please call the Neosho Police Department at 451-8012.